[kentamcolin]

MicroZOTL is supposed to be one sweet amp, however I believe the power output is under 1 watt. Check with Omega, I'm not sure <1 watt will be sufficient to drive the super 3's 93db efficiency even for lower volumes.

 

[djgustashaw]

I recently got a Denon M31 minisystem for my room, and it sounds great at all volumes. Bass, midrange, and highs all scale equally through the volume range. It's an awesome little system, the little Mission speakers bloom incredibly. If you close your eyes you can definitely convince yourself that you're listening to something way bigger, just make sure you have about 6 feet between the speakers despite their small size. One warning: if you listen to a lot of really hard rock, the Denon definitely needs a sub. The only CD I really can't listen to on it is Led Zeppelin's "Early Days"... something just seems missing. But at $400 it won't break the bank, and all other genres do just fine.

 

[Len]

Go with the single driver solution like you originally planned. A good fostex implentation is affordable and sounds supremely nice nearfield. In smaller quarters, toe them in severely and you'll have ample bass and great soundstaging and imaging at lower volumes (you're essentially removing room modes and reflections done this way). It sounds drastic, but toeing them severely so the drivers focal points cross a feet or two before you're intended listening position sometimes works best for cramped spaces. But of course, experiment for yourself.

 

[ooheadsoo]

Quote:

> > Is there any benefit to doing any treatment when I am probably hearing the direct sound primarily versus reflected sound? < Yes, and it's a common myth that listening nearer to the loudspeakers removes all of the bad effects of a room. It's true that the ratio of direct to reflected sound improves favorably when you're very close to the speakers. But the echoes are still there, just 10 dB below the music instead of only 5 dB (or whatever). More important, the badly skewed low frequency response present in all untreated rooms is always present no matter how close you are to the speakers. If you have a test tone CD or another way to play swept sine waves, sit right in front of your speakers while a tone sweeps through the low end. You'll understand immediately. --Ethan <

Posted by Ethan Winer in response to my question about room treatment in nearfield situations. By the way, I can vouch for the bass peaks and nulls myself, sitting 3 feet from my speakers with them pointing pretty straight at my ears. Playing with a sine wave generator, I can clearly hear HUGE peaks, nulls, and phase problems especially obnoxious in the lower frequency range. I have a big mountain (can't fairly call it a peak) around 110-135hz that sounds like it's twice as loud as everything else to my ears, and a phase cancellation null at 100hz that is also annoying. No amount of phase adjustment on my subwoofer will adequately correct that null, and nothing even begins to touch the big mountain. That mountain was the primary reason why I was considering getting an equalizer, but I think I'm going to try some cheap room treatment first.

 

[Norbert]

I use CSW M80's in a nearfield setup. They are 3 way speakers. Positioning is key. I do notice that they lack bass at low volumes (I don't like the sound bleeding outside my room either). Even these, with an 8 inch woofer, would benefit from a subwoofer, but I fear the bass would go beyond my walls and bothers others.

 

[Orpheus]

lkk,

when you say the "balance" is gone, do you mean stereo image balance?--cause that's what usually "balance" means. (and that does get screwed up at low volumes too because some cheap potentiometers do not have their channels matched well.) but if you're only talking about the bass, it's as ooheadsoo said, the lower the volume, the less bass you will hear. and that's not a crossover issue. anyway, even if your crossover was setup wrong, you would still get the same frequency "balance" at any volume--so the bass will sound smaller at all volumes. but anyway, no, your crossover ain't broke... blame your woes on God--he made your ears.

you have two choices: either get used to no bass at low volumes, or use an EQ.

(ps--that's one reason why people like loud music... you hear a fuller representation of the music. more bass. more sound. just sounds better... but again, God made your ears like dissposable tissue--so you can't listen to music properly for too long.)